Ryan Palmer Comes Out Ahead with Mental Golf

Ryan Palmer comes out ahead with mental golf. That’s right. At the end of the first day of the Phoenix Open, Ryan Palmer came out ahead with a 7-under 64 and the lead. What helped him do it? Palmer himself let’s us in on his secret: “I used the exact same putter the last two years, and of course had two of the best years of my career… But toward the end of the year last year, around the BMW, I just got frustrated with not making anything, so I thought I’d try something different, put a similar style head in play and actually had some success…

But my first two weeks out here I could tell I wasn’t comfortable when I’d get over the short putts. When I got home from Bob Hope (Humana), I pulled it out of the garage and was putting in my living room, then went outside in the backyard on my putting green, and I knew it was time to bring it back out. So it showed today.” Wait a second… Is Palmer really pinning his success on his “lucky club”? He is. I’ll explain in a minute. But first, check out this article written by John Nicholson who talks about Palmer’s first day at the Phoenix Open:

Ryan Palmer parred his final hole at dusk for a 7-under 64 and the lead Thursday in the suspended first round of the Phoenix Open.

The start of the round was delayed an hour because of frost, and play was suspended because of darkness at 6:05 p.m. with 42 players unable to finish. Last year, frost and frozen greens delayed play nine hours during the week, forcing a Monday finish.

“I knew I was going to be here in the morning for the second round, so I wasn’t worried about it if we had to come back and restart,” Palmer said. “So, I didn’t think about it and I just kept hitting shots and sticking to my game plan.”

Webb Simpson was a stroke back on the Stadium Course at TPC Scottsdale.

“It’s one of those courses that just fits your eye well,” said Simpson, the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 6.

Palmer switched back to a trusted Odyssey putter model after missing the cuts in his previous starts this year in the Sony Open and Humana Challenge. The three-tour PGA Tour winner made seven birdie putts from 10-15 feet.

“I used the exact same putter the last two years, and of course had two of the best years of my career,” Palmer said. “But toward the end of the year last year, around the BMW, I just got frustrated with not making anything, so I thought I’d try something different, put a similar style head in play and actually had some success.

“But my first two weeks out here I could tell I wasn’t comfortable when I’d get over the short putts. When I got home from Bob Hope (Humana), I pulled it out of the garage and was putting in my living room, then went outside in the backyard on my putting green, and I knew it was time to bring it back out. So it showed today.”

He was 8 under after a birdie on No. 6, but had his lone bogey on No. 7 and parred the final two holes.

Jarrod Lyle, Harrison Frazar, Derek Lamely, Kevin Na and Chez Reavie were two strokes behind at 66, and Bubba Watson, Jason Dufner and Spencer Levin also were 5 under. Watson and Levin had three holes left. Dufner, a playoff loser last year, had five holes remaining.

Okay, so how exactly does a “lucky club” bring you to the top of your game? It’s like I said before: Ryan Palmer comes out ahead with mental golf. Using a “lucky club” or wearing a red shirt are both anchors – a mental technique that can bring out your best. Everyone’s got something like this. The question is: are you tuned in to your personal anchors?

Anchors also work in the negative too. What do I mean? When people go out on the course and they go up to the first tee, they sometimes blow the first shot. Why? Because, in their minds, they are thinking of about something negative. They subconsciously remember their other first tee shots where they messed up – and they follow through with that subconscious thought. When they remember their past bad shots, they get in the zone of someone who would take that very same bad shot. It’s automatic. And it happens to everyone. You can overcome these shots when you learn to control your personal anchors. Find out more about anchors and other mental techniques with Golfersmind. See this video for more information: http://www.golfersmind.com/mental-golf/ Are you aware of any anchors that you use out on the course? Let me hear about them below in the comments section.